Arnau suspects that his partner, Mariona, has had an affair with Oriol, the real estate agent who is showing them apartments in Barcelona. One day, by chance, he comes face to face with Tomás, a man who is identical to Oriol. Tomás, moreover, is an amateur actor. Arnau has a brilliant idea: he hires him to impersonate Oriol and thus disappoint Mariona.
At first, this seems like a very good idea… But things are not always so easy. And the day Arnau sets his plan in motion, Mariona, Tomás, Oriol… and Tomás's twin brother, as well as a neighbor who gets involved everywhere, coincide at his house.
Sébastien Castro's text works like clockwork. The entrances and exits of the actors and the door games work to the millimeter. But, with just this movement, it would not be enough. Sébastien Castro's text makes everything flow with a frantic rhythm. It is not just the scenic movement, the dialogues are also a game of nonsense and confusion that leaves us disoriented.
The entire production is a continuous game. Susana Garachana's adaptation is very well done and she has adapted the entire text to Catalan very well.
A play with rhythm and agility
Xavier Ricart directs Una idea genial and has managed to give it a fast and agile rhythm. The production plays with rapid dialogues, unrestrained entrances and exits. And also with very well-placed pauses that allow intensifying the game we see on stage. Susana Garachana is Mariona, Xavi Mira is Arnau, Anna Azcona is Cati ("but not the one from the pharmacy") and Lluís Villanueva is Oriol, Tomás and Julià.
The four make the production very funny and crazy. The most difficult role, at least in terms of character and costume changes (and there are some really fast changes!!!), goes to Lluís Villanueva who gives a different touch to the three identical men: the real estate agent, the amateur actor and the plumber.
Núria Llunell's costume design is a success. A design that shows us the passage of time with different costume changes and, above all, Lluís Villanueva's character changes… some changes will leave you speechless. Anna Azcona, whom we would like to see more on stage, is the most out-of-orbit counterpoint of the production. Una idea genial is very surreal just with Mariona, Arnau and the three identical men… the interventions of Cati, the neighbor ("but not the one from the pharmacy"), are hilarious.
The set design, by Jorba-Miró Estudi-Taller d'escenografia, is almost another character in the play: many doors, stairs… many spaces… many opportunities to create confusion. The sound design of the show ensures that we don't miss a single word of the text. And, in a text where every word counts, this is greatly appreciated.
A proposal with a very good text at its base and a staging that nails it.
Una idea genial is a comedy that makes you laugh a lot. A whole lot. A comedy where we can laugh at poor Arnau and poor Mariona who find themselves immersed in out-of-control situations because of three identical men and a neighbor who is always there without being entirely there. It's a very good production, with a lot of rhythm. Fast. Agile. A proposal with a very good text at its base and a staging that nails it.